Marker applier



July 1, 1969 Filed July 8, 1966 E. c. GEHWEILER ET AL MARKER APPLIERSheet I of 7 INVENTORS EDWARD c. GEHWEILER AMERST J. DAIGLE AT TORNEY E.c. GEHWEILER ET AL 3,453,660

MARKER APPLIER Filed July 8, 1966 Sheet 3 of '7 INVENTORS EDWARDC.GEHWEILER AMERST J. DAIGLE ATTOR E July 1, 1969 E. c. GEHWEILER ET3,453,660

MARKER APFLIER Filed July 8, 1966 Sheet 4 of 7 ATTORNEY July 1, 1969 c,GEHWE|LER ET AL 3,453,660

MARKER APPLIER Sheet Filed July 8, 1966 IN VE NTOIRS EDWARD C. GEHWEILERAMERST J DAIGLE BY V? f flw AT TOR NEY MARKER APPLIER Sheet Filed July8. 1966 INVENTORS EDWARD C. GEHWEILER AMERST J. DAIG LE ATTORNEY July I,1969 E. c. GEHWEILER ET AL 3,453,660

MARKER APPLIER I 7 Filed July 8, 1966 Sheet 7 of 7 \NVENTOFXS EDWARD C.GEHWEILER AMERST J- DAIGLE ATTORNEY United States Patent 3,453,660MARKER APPLIER Edward C. Gehweiler, Milwaukee, Wis., and Amerst J.Daigle, Randolph, Mass, assignors to W. H. Brady C0.,

Milwaukee, Wis., a corporation of Wisconsin Filed July 8, 1966, Ser. No.563,738

Int. Cl. B65c 9/18 US. Cl. 156-378 16 Claims The present inventionrelates to a machine for removing adhesive markers from a liner andapplying said adhesive markers to a surface. More particularly theinvention resides in a machine including the combination of a linerguide, an applicator roller, a stripping shoe and a measuring roller,such that said liner guide is reciprocated toward and away from saidapplicator roller at predetermined intervals responsive at least in partto the rotation of said measuring roller to press a marker liner intodriving engagement with said applicator roller so that said liner isintermittently 'driven about a stripping edge of said stripping shoe toremove markers from said liner, which markers are pressed onto a surfacein a desired position by said applicator roller.

The use of rows of die cut shapes of colorful vinyl plastic sheetmaterial has been gaining favor over painted stripes in marking aislesand crosswalks in factories, warehouses, parking areas and streets. Suchaisle markers are usually circular in shape and coated with a pressuresensitive adhesive on one surface, and they are mounted by theiradhesive on a release coated liner for packaging and handling beforeapplication to a surface. Prior to the present invention the individualaisle markers were manually removed from individual liner segments andplaced one by one at premarked locations. That laborious and costlymethod of applying aisle markers presented a major obstacle to their usein spite of their other advantages.

The present invention provides a machine whereby the markers aremechanically. removed from a liner in the form of a continuous stripwound on a spool, commonly holding a thousand markers, and the markersare mechanically applied at desired intervals by simply moving themachine along the path on which a marked line is desired. The presentinvention presents the operator with the alternatives of eitherautomatically applying the markers at uniform preset intervals orindividually applying the markers at random intervals selected by theoperator. In the preferred embodiment of the invention shown in thedrawings, the machine rides on an applicator roll in the back whichpresses the markers onto the surface, and on a measuring roller in thefront, which drives a cam mechanism to dispense markers at spacedintervals by intermittently driving the liner on which the markers aremounted about a relatively sharp stripping edge immediately in front ofthe applicator roller. Hence, as the liner follows around the strippingedge, the leading edges of the markers will separate from the liner andbe dispensed onto the surface just in front of the applicator roller.

The machine of the preferred embodiment has no drive motor, but isoperated by pushing it over the surface to be marked. A line guide isprovided whereby the machine may be guide to deposit markers in a row ona chalk line, or either side of such line, or parallel to, or on anyother form of guide. Also, the machine of the preferred embodiment has alocator arrow whereby the operator can determine the precise location atwhich the first marker will be deposited, and the machine has automaticmeans for presetting the desired intervals between such markers.

The principal objects and advantages of the present maybe summarized asfollows:

To provide means for mehcanically removing adhesives markers from aliner and applying them to a surface.

To provide means for automatically applying markers to a surface atpreset uniform intervals.

To provide means for alternately automatically applying markers to asurface at preset intervals or applying markers to a surface at randomselected intervals.

To provide mechanical means for laying a precisely located row ofadhesive markers either with preset uniform intervals between saidmarkers, or with random selected intervals between markers.

To provide low cost and efficient means for applying adhesive aisle orcrosswalk markers.

In the following description of the preferred emb0diment of theinvention shown in the accompanying drawings, which form a part of thedisclosure, the mode of achieving the foregoing principal objects andadvantages will appear along with other objects and advantages. Thisembodiment, which is the best mode contemplated by the inventors ofcarrying out their invention, is described in suflicient detail toenable those skilled in the art to practice this invention. However, itwill be clear that structural changes may be made in the embodimentdescribed and other embodiments may be used in practicing the presentinvention. Hence, the following detailed description is not to beconsidered definitive of the scope of the subject matter of thisinvention, which instead is particularly pointed out and distinctlyclaimed in the claims to be found at the conclusion of thisspecification.

In the drawings:

FIG. 1 is a side elevation of a marker applier according to the presentinvention with portions broken away to reveal interior structure,

FIG. 2 is a back elevation in section of the marker applier shown inFIG. 1 taken along: the line 2-2 in FIG. 1,

FIG. 3 is a top plan view partially in section of the marker appliershown in FIG. 1,

FIG. 4 is a bottom plan view of the marker applier shown in FIG. 1,

FIG. 5 is a side elevation of the marker applier shown in FIG. 1 fromthe opposite side with a cover plate (not shcwn) removed to revealoperating mechanism,

FIG. 6 is a partial side elevation of the marker applier as shown inFIG. 5 and taken along the line 66 in FIG. 2

FIG. 7 is a side elevation of a portion of the marker applier shown inFIG. 5 taken along the line 77 in FIG. 2,

FIG. 8 is a perspective view of a dispenser chassis employed in themarker applied shown in FIGS. 1 through 4, and

FIG. 9 is a view in perspective of a segment of a liner with markers onit such as would be applied by the present invention.

Referring now specifically to the drawings, in FIG. 1 a marker applierembodying the present invention is shown standing on a surface 1 onwhich an aisle or crosswalk is to be delineated. The supportingframework for the marker applier is made up of a cast aluminum, verticalmain chassis 2, a horizontal applicator roller housing 3, which isbolted to the main chassis 2 to project horizontally from its lower rearcorner, and a measuring roller housing 4, which is likewise bolted tothe main chassis 2 and projects laterally from the lower front corner ofthe main chassis 2. The applicator roller housing 3 and the measuringroller housing 4 are, like the main chassis 2, aluminum castings. Themarker applier rides upon an applicator roller 5 at its back end and ameasuring roller 6 at its front end. A spool 7, which has a roll ofliner belt 8 wound on it, is mounted to rotate about a horizontal axisprojecting from the upper rear corner of the main chassis 2 just abovethe applicator roller 5. The liner belt 8 has a release coating on atleast one surface, to which circular vinyl markers 9 are adhered by apressure sensitive adhesive layer 9a coating their undersurfaces, andthe liner belt 8 is longitudinally slit or bisected to form two linerstrips 8a and 8b of substantially equal width.

A rewind reel 10 for receiving spent liner belt 8 is likewise mounted torotate about a horizontal axis, and is located above the measuringroller 6 in the upper front corner of the main chassis 2. The liner belt8 is pulled from the spool 7 downwardly around a relatively sharp,bifurcated, split level stripping edge 11 of a stripping shoe 12. Thestripping shoe 12 is located parallel and adjacent to the applicatorroller 5 just above the surface 1 to which the markers 9 are to beapplied so that the stripping edge 11 faces the applicator roller 5. Theliner belt 8 passes upward in front of the stripping shoe 12 to berewound on the rewind reel 10, after the vinyl markers 9 have beenremoved from it by the stripping shoe 12 and pressed to the surface 1 bythe applicator roller 5.

The main chassis 2 has a carrying handle 13 formed at the top of itsfront end, so that the marker applier may be conveniently transported toits place of use. One prong 14 of a forked end 15 of an operator handle16 is pivotally fastened to the applicator roller housing 3 and an--other prong 18 of the forked end 15 of the operator handle 16 can beseen in FIG. 5 to be pivotally mounted to the opposite side of the mainchassis 2. A stop 17 projects from the main chassis 2 to limit theforward pivot of the operator handle 16, which during operating of themarker applier is pivoted rearwardly from the vertical so that its endis at a convenient height for the operator and so that the machine mayfollow an irregular surface while the operator handle 16 remains at aconstant height.

Referring now to FIG. 4, which is a bottom plan view of the markerapplier shown in FIG. 1, it can be seen that the applicator roller 5 isa cylindrical roller mounted on an applicator roller axle 19, which hasone end journaled in a bearing 20 on an inside lateral surface 21 of theapplicator roller housing 3, and its other end journaled through abearing 22 in the main chassis 2. The end of the applicator roller axle19 that is mounted through the bearing 22 on the main chassis 2 projectsbeyond the opposite lateral surface of the main chassis 2 and has asprocket wheel 23 fastened to it.

Still referring to FIG. 4, it can be seen that the measuring roller 6 isa broad tread wheel mounted on a measuring roller axle 24 which has oneend journaled in a bearing 25 in a lateral wall 26 of the measuringroller housing 4. The other end of the measuring roller axle 24 isjournaled through a bearing 27 in the main chassis 2 and projects beyondthe opposite lateral surface of the main chassis 2 with a timing pinion28 and a measuring sprocket wheel 29 mounted on it next to each other.Between the measuring roller 6 and the lateral wall 26 of the measuringroller housing 4, a drive gear 30 is mounted on the measuring rolleraxle 24, and a slidable sleeve 31 rides loosely on the measuring rolleraxle 24 between the drive gear 30 and the lateral wall 26 of themeasuring roller housing 4. A sliding gear bearing 32 is supported bythe slidable sleeve 31 parallel to and rearwardly of the measuringroller axle 24, and a stub shaft 33 mounting a sliding gear 34, which isan idler, is journaled in the sliding gear bearing 32 to engage thedrive gear 30.

Parallel to and behind the measuring roller axle 24 is a cam shaft 35which has one end journaled in a bearing 36 in the main chassis 2, andan opposite end journaled in a bearing 37 in the lateral wall 26 of themeasuring roller housing 4. A sprag clutch 38 is mounted about the camshaft 35, and the driven member 39 of the sprag clutch 38 is pinned tothe cam shaft 35, whereas the driving member 40 of the sprag clutch 38rotates freely about the cam shaft 35. Also, rotatably mounted about thecam shaft 35 is a nest of three spacing gears 41., 42 and 43, which arefas e ed to the dr ving member 40 of the spra g 4 clutch 38. A singlelobe radial cam 44 is mounted on the cam shaft 35 adjacent to the mainchassis 2, so that when the nest of gears 41, 42 and 43 are drivenforwardly, the cam shaft 35 with the cam 44 will be turned.

The drive gear 30 on the measuring roller axle 24 and the sliding gear34 and the spacing gears 41, 42 and 43 all have the same pitch, but thespacing gears 41, 42 and 43 have differing diameters. Hence, the camshaft 35 can be driven by the forward rotation of the measuring roller 6through a transmission made up of the drive gear 30, the sliding gear 34and the spacing gears 41, 42 and 43, at any one of three different speedratios depending upon which of the spacing gears 41, 42 and 43 thesliding gear 34 engages. The sprag clutch 38 will not transmit rearwardrotation of the measuring roller 6 or the transmission to the cam shaft35.

The sliding gear 34 may be made to select and engage any one of thespacing gears 41, 42 and 43 by sliding and slightly rotating theslidable sleeve 31, which supports the sliding gear 34, about themeasuring roller axle 24 on which it is mounted. Means for convenientlythus moving the slidable sleeve 31 are provided in the C-shaped shiftlever 45 extending forwardly and upwardly through an opening in themeasuring roller housing 4 to a shift handle 46 at its other end. Thesliding gear 34 may be locked in engagement with each of the threespacing gears 41, 42 and 43 by means of a locking pin 47 that isslidably mounted axially through the shift handle 46 to fit in any ofthe three locking holes 48, 49 and 50 in the top of the measuring rollerhousing 4. The locking pin 47 has a knob 51 on its top end above the endof the shift handle 46. Hence, different speed ratios between the cam 44and the measuring roller 6 can be efiectuated by retracting the lockingknob 51 to pull the lower end of the locking pin 47 into the shifthandle 46, moving the shift handle into alignment with the appropriatelocking hole 48, 49 or 50, and depressing the locking knob 51 to forcethe locking pin 47 into the selected locking hole 48, 49 or 50.

What may be considered the central working structure of this embodimentis a cast aluminum dispenser chassis 52, which is L-shaped to projecttwo perpendicular extensions 53 and 54, and which is pivotally mountedon the main chassis 2 so that its main extension 53 is parallel with thelateral surface of the main chassis 2, and its lateral extension 54projects horizontally away from the main chassis 2. The main extension53 has a mounting bearing 55 formed in it, through which a stub shaft 56projectiing from the main chassis 2 is journaled so that the dispenserchassis 52 can pivot about the stub shaft 56 in a plane parallel to themain chassis 2. The main extension of the dispenser chassis 52 also hasupper and lower laterally projecting ribs 57 and 58 tangent to themounting bearing 55 and extending forwardly therefrom. A release springarm 59 is a rearwardly projecting portion of the main extension 53 ofthe dispenser chassis 52, and a nip release spring 60 suspendeddownwardly from the end of the release spring arm 59 is hooked about apeg 61 projecting from the main chassis 2 so that it will be expandedwhen the dispenser chassis 52 pivots the release spring arm 59 upwardly.

The top of the lateral extension 54 of the dispenser chassis 52 isformed by a brake support arm 62, which terminates in a pivotal brakeshoe mounting 63. Below I and parallel to the brake support arm 62 is aguide roller beam 64 with a downwardly projecting flange 65 on its outerend, and the brake support arm 62 and guide roller beam 64 are joinedand mutually strengthened by an integral web 66. A guide roller 67 ismounted beneath the guide roller beam 64 about a through shaft 74journalled in it, which shaft 74 has its ends mounted in the flange 65and the main extension 53 of the dispenser chassis 52.

An elongated, channel-shaped brake shoe 70 is pivotally mounted at itscenter about the brake shoe mounting 63 by means of a pivot pin 69,which extends vertically through both sides of the channel-shaped brakeshoe 70 and the brake shoe mounting 63 between them. Thus, the brakingsurface of the brake shoe 70, Which is the bottom of the channel, facesrearwardly and is mounted for limited pivotal adjustment in thehorizontal plane of the brake support arm 62. Opposite and parallel tothe braking surface of the brake shoe 70, a rotatable, cylindrical,brake drum 68 is mounted between the main chassis 2 and the lateral wall21 of the applicator roller housing 3. The shaft (not shown), aboutwhich the brake drum 68 is rotatably mounted, has eccentric ends lockedin position and anchored in the main chassis 2 and the lateral Wall 21of the applicator roller housing 3. Hence, by turning the shaft (notshown) about its eccentric ends (not shown) the rotatable brake drum 68is adjustable toward or away from the face of the brake shoe 70. Byemploying a rotatable brake drum 68, the surfaces of the markers 9 areprotected against mars and scratches when they pass over the surface ofthe drum 68.

Also mounted on the dispenser chassis 52 is the stripping shoe 12, whichis made up of a thin steel plate, the upper end of which is bolted tothe front side of the guide roller beam 64. From the front of the guideroller beam 64, the stripping shoe 12 projects downwardly and bendsrearwardly beneath the guide roller 67. The rearwardly projecting end ofthe stripping shoe 12 is split in half, and the outside half is bentupwardly to form an upper stripping blade 71, while the half closest tothe main chassis 2 extends approximately horizontally rearward to serveas a lower stripping blade 72. A vertical delaminating blade 73 projectsdownwardly from the end of the edge of the lower stripping blade 72adjacent to the upper stripping blade 71 so that its rearward facingvertical edge is continuous with the rearward facing horizontal edge ofthe lower stripping blade 72. When the liner belt 8 passes around thestripping shoe 12, the inside liner strip 8a passes around the lowerstripping blade 72 and the outer liner strip 8b passes around the upperstripping blade 71, and the delaminating finger 73 projects through theslit that bisects the liner belt 8. This bifurcated, slit-levelstripping shoe 12 not only assures complete delamination of the marker 9from the liner belt 8, but it also minimizes the possibility of thedelaminating blade 73 snagging and tearing the liner belt 8, as it wouldtend to do if the blades 71 and 72 were on the same level and the linerbelt 8 were not perfectly centered. Even when the liner belt 8 isperfectly centered, if the blades 71 and 72 are on the same level, theliner strips 8a and 817 will rub against the sides of the delaminatingblade 73, with the resulting likelihood that a snag may develop.

Finally, the guide roller shaft 74 projects laterally from the lowerfront corner of the main extension 53 through an arcuate slot 75 in themain chassis 2. For these purposes, of course, instead of the guideroller shaft 74 a separate peg mounted in the main extension 53, or aprojection integral with the main extension 53 of the main chassis 2could also be used. As the guide roller shaft 74 is moved through thearcuate slot 75, the dispenser chassis 52 is pivoted about the stubshaft 56 and the guide roller 67 is moved toward or away from theapplicator roller 5'. Hence, the end of the guide roller shaft 74, or asuitable substitute, serves as a crank pin, which is engaged andimpelled to pivot the dispenser chassis 52.

A follower arm 76 is pivotally mounted at one end about the guide rollershaft 74, and it has a follower roller 77 on its opposite end adjacentto the cam 44. The follower arm 76 is a longitudinally compressibleassembly made up of two telescoping members that are spring biased apartby a compression spring inside the follower arm. Hence, when the lobe ofthe cam 44 strikes roller 77, it drives the roller 77, follower arm 76and guide roller shaft 74 rearwardly, pivoting the dispenser chassis 52so that the guide roller 67 approaches the applicator roller 5 and thebrake shoe 70 retracts from the brake drum 68. Since the follower arm 76is longitudinally compressible, it is slightly compressed when it holdsthe guide roller 67 against the applicator roller 5, thus providing aconstant, uniform pressure on the liner belt 8. A bias spring 163suspended from the upper rib 57 of the main extension 53 of thedispenser chassis 52 is connected to the follower arm 76 to hold thefollower roller 77 in position to be engaged by the cam 44. However, ifthe follower arm 76 is pivoted downwardly about the crank pin 74, whichin this embodiment is an extension of the guide roller shaft 74, thebias spring 163 is extended and the follower roller 77 may be swung outof the path of the cam 44. Then the nip release spring will hold thedispenser chassis 52 in a position where the guide roller 67 is remotefrom the applicator roller 5 and the brake shoe 70 engages or isslightly spaced from the brake drum 68.

Turning now to the mounting for the spool 7, a spindle 78 isnon-rotatably anchored to the main chassis 2 so as to project laterallytherefrom and provide an axis of rotation and support for the spool 7. Apulley 79 is rotatably mounted about the spindle 78 adjacent to the mainchassis 2, and a stepped arbor 80, having three separate diameters toaccommodate different size spools 7, is fastened to the pulley 79 androtatably mounted about'the spindle 78. A peg 81 projects from theradial surface of the arbor to fit through a corresponding hole on thespool 7, to insure that the spool 7 will rotate with the arbor 80 andthe pulley 79. The other end of the spindle 78 fits loosely through acentral hole in a core 82 of the spool 7, and the spool 7 is held ontothe arbor 88 by a slidable collar 83 which fits loosely around the arbor80 and contains a spring ball detent to locate in one of three grooves84 in the spindle 78, depending on the size of the spool 7. A retardingbrake spring 85, with one end anchored to a peg projecting from the topof the main chassis 2 just behind the rewind reel 10, extends part wayaround the pulley 79 and downward to Where its other end is hooked to afree end of a pivotally mounted adjusting arm 86. The adjusting arm 86is shown in its up position, but if a larger braking force is desired,as when the spool 7 is full, the adjusting arm 86 may be pivotedforwardly around its pivotal mounting until it strikes a stop 87projecting from the main chassis 2. In the position shown, the brakespring provides comparatively light braking force as would be desiredwhen the spool 7 is only partially full. When the pulley 79 is rotated,the retarding brake spring 85 bearing against the pulley 79 providesfriction drag and by this friction drag is itself distended, so thatwhen the driving force on the pulley 79 ceases, the retarding brakespring 85 will contract to its normal condition slightly rotating thepulley 79 back to take up additional rotation of the pulley 79 resultingfrom inertia.

The rewind reel 10 is made up of two rewind hubs 88 and 89 rotatablymounted on a rewind. shaft 90, which has one end journaled through anantifriction bearing 91 mounted in a tubular bearing housing 92, whichprojects from the main chassis 2. The end of the rewind shaft projectingthrough the main chassis 2 is keyed to the driven half of a sprag clutch93, and a rewind sprocket 94 is rotatably mounted about the end of therewind shaft 90 and fastened to the drive member of the sprag clutch 93.A ratchet wheel 95 is pinned to the rewind shaft 90 adjacent to theanti-friction bearing 91 in a tubular bearing housing 92. A pawl 96,having one end pivotally mounted to the tubular bearing housing 92, isspring biased into engagement with the ratchet wheel 95.

The inside rewind hub 89 is mounted on an antifriction bearing 97 whichis slip-fitted about the rewind shaft 90, and it has an annular frictionsurface, such as cork, cemented to its radial centrally facing surface.Similarly, the outside hub 88 is mounted on an anti-friction bearing 99,which is also slip-fitted on the rewind shaft 90, and the centrallyfacing radial surface of the outside hub 88 also has a friction diskcemented on it. Between the friction disks 98 and 100 on the centrallyfacing radial surfaces of the rewind hubs 88 and 89, a steel drive disk101 is pinned to the rewind shaft 90. A coil compression spring 102 isSlipped over the rewind shaft 90 and held tightly compressed by a thumbnut 103 threaded on the end of the rewind shaft 90 to hold the frictiondisks 98 and 100 in sliding frictional engagement with the drive disk101. Hence the rewind reel 10 is made up of a pair of rewind hubs 88 and89 which are independently driven by the rewind shaft 90 through a slipcoupling so as to maintain a uniform tension across the individual linerstrips 8a and 8b of the liner belt 8.

The distance traveled by the outside liner strip 81) from the spool 7 tothe rewind reel 10 is somewhat shorter than that traveled by the insideliner strip 8a due to the different levels of the stripping blades 71and 72. Also, the liner strips 8a and 8b may, from time to time, besubjected to different stresses. Since it is necessary to the preciseapplication of the markers 9 that the liner 8 be perfectly aligned, andsince the alignment of the liner 8 quires constant tension, theconstruction of the rewind reel 10 is provided so that the liner strips8a and 8b can be wound individually and at the same rate. Also, aseparator blade 135 is mounted on the end arm 105 extending from themain chassis 2 to project forwardly between the liner strips 8a and 8bbetween the stripping shoe 12 and the rewind reel 10 to maintain properspacing between and alignment of the liner strips 8a and 812 On theother side of the main chassis 2 from the rewind reel 10, the applicatorsprocket wheel 23 and the measuring sprocket wheel 29 and the rewindsprocket wheel 94 are connected to be driven in common by a timing chain104. A nylon, adjustable takeup block 162 is eccentrically mounted onthe main chassis 2 to serve as a guide for the timing chain 104 and totake up any excessive slack that might develop in the chain 104. Thus, apositive control over the relative rates of rotation of the applicatorroller 5, the measuring roller 6 and the rewind reel 10 is maintained.Inasmuch as it is essential to the optimum alignment of the liner belt 8and application of the markers 9 that the liner belt 8 be taut at alltimes, the ratios of the three sprocket wheels 23, 29 and 94 are suchthat the surface speed of the rewind reel 10 when rotating freely isgreater than the identical speeds of the applicator roller 5 andmeasuring roller 6. The pawl 96 engages the ratchet wheels 95 to permitthe rewind reel to rotate in a forward direction, but, in the event thatthe marker applier is pulled backward the pawl 96 prevents reverserotation of the rewind shaft 90 and hence of the rewind reel 10, so thatslack is never permitted to develop in the liner belt 8.

The structure described thus far provides automatic application ofmarkers to the surface 1 at any one of three selected intervals. FIGS;5, 6 and 7, primarily, reveal the mechanism whereby markers 9 may bedispensed at random intervals selected by the operator. FIG. 5 shows amanual dispensing lever 106 hinge mounted to a bracket 107 that isfastened to the operator handle 16. A cable 108 is connected to themanual dispensing lever 106, so that when the operator squeezes thedispensing lever 106, the cable 108 will be pulled upward along theoperator handle 16. The cable 108 extends from the manual dispensinglever 106 down the handle 16 along one prong 18 of the forked end of thehandle 16 and through a bracket 109, which is screw mounted to the mainchassis 2. The bottom end of the cable 108 is fastened through aconnecting pin 110, which joins the bottom corners of two plates 111 and1112 making up the frame of an automatic release assembly 113. Theautomatic release assembly 113 is pivotally mounted about a horizontalpivot pin 114 projecting from the vertical main chassis 2. Pullingdownward against the cable 108 on the pivotal release assembly 113 is anassembly return spring 115 which is connected between another connectingpin 116 between the plates 11! and 112 at the lower end of the automaticrelease assembly 113 and a peg projecting from the main chassis 2beneath and in front of the automatic release assembly 113.

In FIG. 6 taken along the line 6-6 in FIG. 2, the inside of theautomatic release assembly 113 behind the outside plate 111 is revealedshowing its working mechanism. Extending through the top of theautomatic release assembly 113 between the plates 111 and 112 is aslidably and pivotally mounted trigger 117, the front end of which isnotched to receive a latching pin 118, which also serves to connect thetwo plates 111 and 112. On the upper edge of the trigger 117 at its backend an eye 119 is formed to receive one end of a cocking spring 120,which extends upwardly and forwardly to the point where its other end isanchored to a connecting pin 121 holding the plates 111 and 112 of theautomatic release assembly 113 in proper spaced relationship. The motionof the trigger 117 is guided and defined by a rod 122 which is mountedthrough the trigger 117 near its center so that the ends of the rod 122will project through and ride in guide slots 123 formed in the plates111 and 112.

Beneath the trigger 117 in the automatic release assembly 113 is atiming lever 124, which is pivotally mounted about the pivot pin 114that also supports the automotic release assembly 113. A timing segment125 is rotatably mounted on the upper front corner of the timing lever124, and a segment return spring 126 has one end anchored on the timinglever 124 and its other end fastened to the back edge of the timingsegment 125 to urge the timing segment 125 toward its normal positionshown in the drawing. An eye 127 is formed in the lower rear corner ofthe timing segment 125 to receive one end of a meshing spring 128, theother end of which is anchored about a connecting pin 129 which alsoserves to hold the plates 111 and 112 in proper space relationship.

A forked link 130 passes around either side of the back end of thetrigger 117 between the plates 111 and 112 of the automatic releaseassembly 113, and its ends are bored to receive the ends of the guiderod 122 for the trigger 117 extending through them. The opposite end ofthe forked trigger link 130 is connected by a trigger spring 131 to aneye 132 on the upper end of the guide control lever 133 which isrotatably mounted about a pin 134 projecting from the lateral surface ofthe main chassis 2 so that it will pivot about a horizontal axis. Thelower end of the guide control lever 133 is located adjacent to and justin front of the guide roller shaft '74, which projects from thedispenser chassis 52 through the arcuate slot in the main chassis 2.

Hence, if the top of the automatic release assembly 113 is pivotedforwardly, the trigger 117, through the trigger link 1311 and spring 131will pull the top end of the guide control lever 133 forward as that thebottom of the guide control lever 133 will drive the guide roller shaft74 crank pin backward. When the automatic release assembly 113 is thuspivoted, the timing segment is forced into engagement with the timingpinion 28 on the measuring roller axle 24. (If the segment 125 cannotimmediately engage the teeth of the pinion 28, the meshing spring 128can expand to permit the segment 125 to ride on top of the teeth of thepinion 28 until the gear teeth are properly aligned with one another,when the meshing spring 128 will urge the pinion 28 and segment 125 intomeshing engagement.) As the measuring roller axle 24 rotates, thetimining pinion 28 drives the segment 125 upwardly until it engages theunder edge of the trigger 117 to force the trigger 117 up over thelatching pin 118. When the trigger 117 is thus unlatched, the triggeringspring 131 and nip release spring 60 may contract pulling the trigger117 backward restoring the guide control lever 133 to its normalposition. The mechanism will remain in that condition until the operatorreleases the dispensing lever 106 to permit automatic release assembly113 to return to its normal position under the impetus of the assemblyreturn spring 115. When the automatic release assembly 113 returns toits normal position, the trigger will be cocked once again bycontraction of the expanded cocking spring 120 and it will be relatchedon the latching pin 118.

To disengage the cam mechanism described above, a selector pedal 136 ismounted adjacent the main chassis 2 in its lower, rear corner. The lowerend of the selector pedal 136 is fastened about one end of a pedal shaft137 which is journaled through the main chassis 2, and a pedal lever 138is mounted on the other end of the pedal shaft. The pedeal lever 138bears against the back surface of a spur 139 projecting upwardly fromthe end of the follower arm 76, which is mounted about the guide rollershaft 74. Hence, when the selector pedal 136 is depressed, the pedallever 138 forces the top end of the spur 139 downward, pivoting thefollower arm 76 against the bias spring 163 about the guide roller shaft74 so as to place the follower roller 77 out of reach of the cam 44.

A triangular-shaped metal housing (not shown) is provided to be boltedonto the lateral surface of the main chassis 2 about the timing chain104 and enclosing the sprocket wheels 23, 29 and 94, and the automaticrelease assembly 113 and the other structure described and generallymounted in that area. Since that housing is a conventional metal orplastic casting stamped or sheet metal member performing the usualprotective functions for such mechanisms, it is not deemed necessary toshow it here.

A line sight 140 has one end adjustably mounted on the center of the topof the measuring roller housing 4. An arm 141 on the line sight 140projects horizontally out from its adjustable mounting on the top of themeasuring roller housing 4, and it has ,a sight member 142 fastened toit by a wing nut 143 at its top and projecting downward from its outerend with a flexible spring follower 144 at its bottom end. If the arm141 is set to project straight in front of the marker applier, then themarkers 9, when they are dispensed from the marker applier, will becentered on the path of the spring follower 144. By adjusting the arm141 to slant to the right or left of the center of the marker applier,the markers 9 will be centered to the right or left of the path of thespring follower 144 by the same distance, and the arm 141 may also beprojected out to either side to follow a wall or a line of cabinets sothat the markers 9 can be deposited in a line at a present distance fromthe wall or cabinets.

A marker locator 145 is retractably mounted to project laterally fromthe outside surface of the measuring roller housing '4 to indicate wherethe center of the first marker 9 applied will be. The marker locator 145consists of a flexible rubber arrow 146 which has one end pivotallymounted to a horizontal wing 147 of a locator bracket 148 which has anL-shaped cross section. A vertical wing 149 of the locator bracket 148is fastened to the inside surface of the lateral wall 26 of themeasuring roller housing 4 adjacent its bottom edge by means of a bolt150', which passes through a slot 151 in' the vertical wing 149 of thelocator bracket 148 and is turned into a threaded hole in the wall 26 ofthe measuring roller housing 4. Three locking notches 152, 153 and 154are formed at the top edge of the vertical wing 149 of the locatorbracket 148 to receive a locking pin 155 projecting from the lateralwall 26 of the measuring roller housing 4 and a desired locking notch isheld in engagement with the locking pin 155 by means of a holding spring156, one end of which is connected to the vertical wing 149 of thelocator bracket 148 and the other end of which is anchored to themeasuring roller housing 4 to urge the cator bracket 148 upward againstthe bolt 150. Rivets 157 and 158 at either end of the horizontal wing147 of locator bracket 148 hold a strip of metal to the bottom of thehorizontal wing 147 and a base end of the arrow 146 is pivotally mountedto the back rivet 158 between the metal strip 159 and the horizontalwing 147 of the locator bracket 148, so that it can be rotated in andout and held securely in position.

Just above the marker locator 145 :is a locator knob 160, which isfastened to the end of the cam shaft 35 projecting through the lateralwall 26 of the measuring roller housing 4. When the locator knob 160 isturned to a predetermined position, the cam 44 will be positionedadjacent to the follower roller 77 so any further rotation of the cam 44will cause it to drive the follower roller 77 rearward to initiate thedispensing; of a marker 9. Hence, by setting the locator knob 160 in thepredetermined position, the exact location of the next marker 9 appliedcan be predicted by the arrow 146.

In the operation of the above described apparatus, one advantage of themode of its construction lies in the fact that all of the apparatus forsupporting the liner belt 8 is cantilevered from the side of the mainchassis 2. As a result, it is not necessary to thread the liner belt 8into the machine, but instead it can be slid into place with ease. Theembodiment described contemplates three different sizes of liners 8 andmarkers 9, and accordingly three different sizes of spools 7. Theinvention, of course, is not so limited, but may accommodate any number.When the operator selects the size of spool 7 desired, he simply slidesit on the spindle 78 and due to the corresponding configuration of thecore 82 of the spool 7, the spool 7 will seat on the proper portion of astepped arbor so that the liner 8 will be perfectly centered on theapparatus. Then the operator slides the collar 83 over the spindle 78and snaps it into position over the corresponding spring ball detent 84to hold the spool 7 in proper position on the spindle 78.

The liner 8 will usually have about eighteen inches of leader whichbears no markers 9, and which is used to start the liner 8 through themachine. The operator unwinds the leader and slides it between the brakedrum 68 and the brake shoe 70, between the guide roller 67 and theapplicator roller 5, around the stripping shoe 12 and then back up pastthe separating blade to the rewind reel 10. Each of the liner strips 8aand 8b is then fastened to the appropriate hub 89 and 88 of the rewindreel 10 with masking tape or any other suitable fastening means. Afterthe slack in the liner 8 is taken up around the rewind reel and enoughof the leader is wound on the rewind reel 10 so that the first marker 9is just above the nip between the guide roller 67 and the applicatorroller 5, the marker applier is ready for operation.

To set up the machine for automatic operation, the operator selects oneof three alternative spacings to appear between the markers 9 as appliedby adjusting the shift handle 46 and locking it in the appropriatelocking hole 48, 49 or 50 by means of the shift locking pin 47. Althoughthe embodiment shown contemplates three alternate spacings for automaticoperation by virtue of the use of three spacing gears 41, 42 or 43 inthe transmission, the invention, of course, is not so limited. Theintervals between the markers 9, when applied to the surface 1, isdetermined by the rotational speed ratio between the measuring roller 6and the cam shaft 35 which is determined by the spacing gear 41, 42 or43 engaging the sliding gear 34 when the shift handle 46 is locked inthe desired position. With this accomplished, the marker 10- cator maybe set by pivoting it about the bolt and sliding it until the lockingpin seats in the locking notch 152, 153 or 154 corresponding to thespacing gear 41, 42 or 43 selected. Then the arrow 146 may be pivoted toproject laterally from the side of the measuring roller housing 4, andthe locator knob mounted on the end of the cam shaft 35 is then turneduntil the cam 44 is adjacent to the cam follower roller 77. Then, whenthe first label 9 is dispensed by the machine, it will then be appliedat the location pointed to by the arrow 146. Finally, the line sight 140is adjusted so that the spring follower 144 on the sight 1 42 is on thechalk line or other guide to be followed and the marker applier ispositioned relative to that guide or chalk line so that a marker 9 willbe centered upon the guide or spaced on either side of the guide as isdesired.

Now all the operator need do is push the marker applier along thesurface 1 on which the markers 9 are to be applied, and the machine willdo the rest. As the marker applier moves over the surface, the measuringroller 6 rotates and drives the cam shaft 35 through the spacingtransmission. When the cam 44 strikes the cam follower roller 77, itmoves the follower arm 76 in a rearward direction. Since the other endof the follower arm 76 is mounted above the guide roller shaft 74projecting from the dispenser chassis 52, the rearward movement of thefollower arm 76 pivots the dispenser chassis 52 so that the guide roller67 is moved rearward to grasp the liner belt 8 between it and theapplicator roller so that the rotating applicator roller 5 will draw theliner belt 8 downward. Simultaneously, the pivoting of the dispenserchassis 52 moves the brake shoe 70 away from the brake drum 68,releasing the liner belt 8 for movement. Since the liner belt 8 is woundon the spool 7 so that the markers 9 are on the inside, the markers 9are now presented facing the applicator roller 5, and as the applicatorroller 5 draws the belt 8 downward it engages the surface of the marker9. As the belt 8 with marker 9 moves downward, the belt 8 follows arounda split level stripping edge 11, with one liner strip 812 passing aroundthe upper blade 71 as the other liner strip 8a passes about the lowerstripping blade 72. Thus, the liner strip 8b is pulled away from themarker 9, and as the marker 9 tries to follow the liner strip 8a, itengages the delaminating blade 73, when the liner 8a passes around thelower stripping blade 72. Thus the marker 9 is removed from the linerstrip 8, and its edge is dispensed onto the surface 1. The applicatorroller 5, passing over the marker 9, presses it onto the surface 1 andsimultaneously draws it away from the liner belt 8. Before the marker 9is entirely separated from the liner belt 8, the cam 44 is rotatedbeyond the cam follower 77 so that it no longer holds the dispenserchassis 52 in the pivoted position, and the nip release spring 60 urgesthe dispenser chassis 52 to pivot so that the guide roller 67 willrelease the liner belt 8 from the applicator roller 5 and the brake shoe70 will move rearward and grip the liner belt 8 against the brake drum68. However, so long as a portion of the marker 9 remains on the linerbelt 8, the portion of the marker 9 that is adhered to the surface 1beneath the applicator roller 5 pulls the liner 8 and the stripping shoe12, about which the liner 8 passes, rearwardly, preventing the releasespring 60 from pivoting the dispenser chassis 52 all the way back to thebraking position. The travel of the machine relative to the portion ofthe marker 9 adhered to the surface 1 pulls the remaining portion of themarker 9 from the liner belt 8 and pulls the liner belt 8 downward untilthe marker 9 is completely removed from the belt 8 and dispensed fromthe machine. Once the marker 9 is completely released from the linerbelt 8, the dispenser chassis 52 is no longer restrained, and it rotatesabout a stub shaft 56 so that the liner belt 8 is immediately clampedbetween the brake shoes 70 and the brake drum 68 preventing movement ofthe liner belt 8.

Although the liner belt 8 is stopped at the brake shoe 70, the inertiaof the rotation of the spool 7 will tend to cause the spool 7 tocontinue rotating a short distance against the retarding brake spring85. This would introduce slack into the liner belt 8 which would upsetthe operation of the machine were it not for the effect of the retardingbrake spring 85, which has been extended by the rotation of the pulley79 while the liner belt 8 has been drawn from the spool 7. When there isno longer any stress on the liner belt 8, the retarding brake spring 85is free to compress back to its normal shape and in so doing it rotatesthe pulley 79 and the spool 7 in a rearward direction, picking up theslack which had been iii introduced into the liner belt 8 by the inertiaof the movement of the spool 7. Although the continued rotation of anapplicator roller 5 and the measuring roller 6 during the intervalbetween dispensing of markers will continue to drive a timing chain 104and thus the rewind sprocket 94, the rewind reel 10 is permitted to stoprotating as son as the liner belt 8 is taut as a result of the slippagein the frictional drive between the friction disks 98 and 100 and thedrive disk 101. Thus the liner belt 8 will remain stationary and tautuntil the measuring roller 6 has rotated far enough to guide the cam 44back into contact with the follower roller 77, when a describedoperation is repeated.

In short, by simply pushing the marker applier of the present inventionalong a predetermined path, the markers 9 may be automatically dispensedand applied to the surface 1 at any predetermined interval and inperfect alignment. At the end of any line of markers 9, the operator caneasily pick up the marker applier of the present embodiment by itscarrying handle 13 to transport it to another desired location, or hemay depress the pedal 136 and push the machine without dispensinglabels. When the spool 7 is full, the leverage and inertia of the spool7 is great so that a heavier braking force is desired and this isachieved by rotating the adjusting link 86 into its lower position. Asthe spool 7 begins to empty, the leverage of the liner belt 8 is reducedwith the reduction in the radius of the supply on the spool 7 and theinertia of the spool 7 is accordingly reduced by the lighter supply andreduced leverage, so that less braking is required, and the adjustinglink 86 may be rotated about its pivotal attachment on the main chassis2 to the upper position as shown in FIG. 1. When the supply on the spool7 has been exhausted, the spool 7 is easily removed by sliding thecollar 83 off the spindle 78 and pulling the spool 7 after it, and thespent liner 8a' and 8b may be removed from the rewind reel 10.

If it is preferred to dispense and apply the markers 9 at randomintervals instead of at the automatic uniform intervals as describedabove, the operator depresses the selector pedal 136 which rotates thepedal shaft 137 with the pedal lever 138 on its inside end. The pedallever 138 strikes the upstanding spur 139 on the back of the followerarm 76 rotating the follower roller 77 downward against the bias spring163 and out of the path of the cam 44. Hence, the rotation of themeasuring roller 6 is no longer able to initiate the dispensing orapplying of markers 9. Having thus disconnected the automatic mechanism, the operator may now cause a marker 9 to be dispensed wheneverdesired by squeezing the dispensing lever 106 on the top of the handle16.

The squeezing of the dispenser lever 106 draws a cable 108 up pivotingthe automatic release asesmbly 113 about its supporting pin 114. Thepivoting of the automatic release assembly 113 draws a top 132 of theguide control lever 133 forward through the linkage made up of thetrigger 117, the forked trigger link and the trigger spring 131. Whenthe top 132 of the control lever 133 is pulled forwardly, the bottom ofthe control lever 133 moves rearwardly and drives the guide roller shaft74 rearwardly through the slot 75 pivoting the dispenser chassis 52 sothat the brake shoe 70 releases the liner belt 8 and the guide roller 67grips the liner belt 8 against the applicator roller 5. Thus the linerbelt 8 will be driven downwardly and a marker 9 will be dispensed asdescribed above. However, without some mechanism for automaticallyreleasing the dispenser chassis 52, the markers 9 would either beapplied continuously at the same narrow intervals as separate them onthe liner belt 8, or the operator would have to develop sufficient skillin timing to know precisely when to release the manual dispensing lever106.

To avoid either of those alternatives, the present invention includes amechanism Which automatically releases the dispenser chassis 52 afterone marker 9 has been dispensed, even though the operator does notreleases the manual dispensing lever 106. When the operator squeezes themanual dispensing lever 106 pivoting the automatic release assembly 113as described, the timing segment 125 in the automatic release assembly113 engages the timing pinion 28 mounted on the axle 24 of the measuringroller 6. Hence, as the measuring roller 6 rotates, it drives the timingsegment 125 upward, so that the timing segment 125 pushes the trigger117 upward to unlatch it. When the trigger 117 is unlatched, it may bepulled backward by the combined action of the trigger spring 131 and theaction of the nip release spring 60 pivoting the dispenser chassis 52and guide roller shaft 74 forwardly against the lower end of the releaseguide control lever 133. This movement of the dispenser chassis 52releases the liner belt 8 between the guide roller 67 and the applicatorroller 5 and clamps theliner belt between the brake shoe 70 and thebrake drum 68, stopping the liner belt 8 as described previously.

Before the operator desires to dispense another marker 9, he mustrelease the manual dispensing lever 106 so that the automatic releaseassembly 113 can be pivoted back to its normal position as shown in thedrawing by the assembly return spring 115. When the automatic releaseassembly 113 is in that normal position, the trigger spring 131 is notextended and a guide control lever 133 no longer pulls against thetrigger 117, so that the cooking spring 120 can pull the trigger 117forwardly to its latched position on the latching pin 118. Then themechanism is ready to dispense another marker 9 whenever the operatorsqueezes the manual dispensing lever 106, when the described operatingsequence is repeated. To return to automatic operation, it is onlynecessary that the selector pedal 136 be restored to its raisedposition, permitting the bias spring 163 to lift the follower roller 77back into the path of the cam 44.

Thus, the present invention provides a reliable, simple to operate,eificient and versatile machine for applying adhesive markers.Manifestly, enumerable modifications may be made in the embodimentdescribed without departing from the essence of the invention. Somemodifications have been mentioned, but no attempt is made here toexhaust the possibilities. The preferred embdi-.

ment shown here is peculiarly adapted to the needs of the market as theyappear today, accordingly the mechanism is kept as simple as possibleconsistent therewith. Hence, there is room for the addition of otherfeatures not deemed necessary at this time, including the addition of apower drive and the usual drive connection associated therewith.

Accordingly, the invention is not limited to the embodiment shown anddescribed here but rather as set forth in the claims that follow.

We claim:

1. An adhesive marker applier comprising the combination of a mainchassis;

a spool mounted on said chassis to normally rotate about a horizontalaxis, and having a slit liner wound upon it and removably supporting aplurality of adhesive markers on a surface of said slit liner, saidliner being made up of at least two separate strips;

a stripping shoe mounted below said spool about which said liner passesfrom said spool and at which said markers are removed from said liner;

an applicator roller mounted on said chassis below said spool and behindsaid stripping shoe to normally rotate about a horizontal axis and tobear against a surface upon which said markers are to be applied topress said adhesive markers on said surface;

a measuring roller mounted on said chassis horizontally spaced from saidapplicator roller to normally rotate about a horizontal axis in contactwith said surface upon which said markers are to be applied;

14 a liner guide adapted intermittent reciprocating movement toward andaway from said applicator roller responsive in at least part of itsmovement to rotation of said measuring roller and mounted to force saidslit liner and markers into driving engagement with said applicatorroller;

and a liner rewind reel rotatably mounted on said chassis to receive andrewind said slit liner after said adhesive markers have been removedfrom said liner and connected to be driven through a nonpositivecoupling to maintain a desired tension in said liner.

2. An adhesive marker applier according to claim 1 wherein said slitliner is a belt of liner material centrally slit lengthwise into twostrips and having a release coating on at least one surface;

said markers are colored pieces of plastic sheet material having asurface coated with a pressure sensitive adhesive and being sequentiallymounted by said adhesive on said release coated surface of both of saidstrips of said slit liner;

and said stripping shoe has a bifurcated and split level stripping edgeand a dela minating blade projecting from the center of said strippingedge toward said surface upon which said markers are to be applied.

3. An adhesive marker applier according to claim 1 wherein said mainchassis is normally vertical metal casting having a spindle cantileveredfrom one vertical surface toward its upper rear corner about which saidspool is rotatably mounted, and having a supporting bearing cantileveredfrom said surface toward its upper front corner to support said rewindreel.

4. An adhesive marker applier according to claim 3 wherein a dispenserchassis is pivotally mounted on said main chassis for pivotal movementabout a horizontal axis adjacent to said main chassis;

a brake shoe projects laterally from an upper front portion of saiddispenser chassis substantially parallel to said applicator roller toreciprocate approximately backward and forward as said dispenser chassispivots;

said liner guide is a guide roller rotatably mounted on said dispenserchassis to project laterally therefrom parallel to said applicatorroller and to be reciprocated as said dispenser chassis pivots;

said stripping shoe is mounted below .and parallel with said guideroller;

and a cylindrical brake drum is mounted to project laterally from saidmain chassis parallel with and facing said brake shoe so that said slitliner with markers may pass between said brake shoe and brake drum to bealternately grasped and released between said brake shoe and drum assaid dispenser chassis pivots.

5. An adhesive label applier according to claim 3 wherein saidapplicator roller is a cylindrical. roller mounted on an applicatorroller axle, and one end of said applicator roller axle is journaledthrough said main chassis;

said measuring roller is mounted on a measuring roller axle, and one endof said measuring roller axle is 65 journaled through said main chassis;

and said rewind reel is driven by a rewind reel shaft mounted throughthe center of said rewind reel and has one end journaled through saidmain chassis.

6. An adhesive marker applier according to claim 5 wherein an applicatorroller housing is mounted on said main chassis to project laterally fromsaid surface of said chassis over said applicator roller and torotatably support another end of said applicator roller axle;

and a measuring roller housing is mounted on said main 15 chassis toproject laterally from said surface over said measuring roller and torotatably support another end of said measuring roller axle.

7. An adhesive marker applies according to claim wherein said applicatorroller axle and said measuring roller axle and said rewind reel driveshaft are positively connected to rotate at speeds of constantproportion to one another.

8. An adhesive marker applier according to claim 4 wherein a cam isrotatably supported by said main chassis about a normally horizontalaxis and it is positively connected to be driven by said measuringroller;

a cam follower is supported by said main chassis to engage said cam tobe displaced by rotation of said cam;

and said dispenser chassis is operatively connected to said cam followerto be pivoted by displacement of said cam follower and is spring biasedagainst pivoting by displacement of said cam follower.

9. An adhesive marker applier according to claim 8 wherein said cam ismounted on a cam shaft journaled in said main chassis parallel to andspaced from said measuring roller;

said measuring roller is mounted on a measuring roller axle journaled insaid main chassis;

a drive gear is mounted on said measuring roller axle to rotatetherewith;

a plurality of spacing gears of identical pitch but different diametersare mounted on said cam shaft; and a sliding gear simultaneouslyengaging said drive gear and any selected one of said spacing gears ismounted on the end of a stub shaft journaled in a bearing and saidbearing is supported on a sleeve slidably and rotatably fitted aboutsaid measuring roller axle.

10. An adhesive marker applier according to claim 1 wherein said linerrewind reel is comprised of a rotatably mounted drive shaft connected tobe driven through a oneway drive and having a coupling disk mounted onsaid drive shaft to rotate with said drive shaft, a pair of cylindricalhubs rotatably mounted on said drive shaft with one of said hubs on eachside of said coupling disk and each of said hubs having a frictionsurface in spring biased engagement with said disk so that when saiddrive shaft rotates said hubs may be independently driven to maintain auniform desired tension in each strip of said liner.

11. An adhesive marker applier as set forth in claim 1 wherein saidliner guide is spring biased away from said applicator roller andnormally operatively connected through a cam mechanism driven by saidmeasuring roller for periodic movement toward said applicator roller;

means for manually interrupting operation of said cam mechanism;

and a manual liner guide control randomly actuatable to move said linerguide toward said applicator roller independently of rotation of saidmeasuring roller.

12. An adhesive marker applier as set forth in claim 11 wherein said cammechanism includes a cam driven by said measuring roller, and a camfollower slidably pivotally mounted on said main chassis and springbiased to normally engage said cam, said cam follower being operativelyconnected to move said liner guide;

and said means for manually interrupting operation of said cam mechanismis a foot pedal pivotally mounted on said main chassis to shift said camfollower beyond engageable distance from said cam when said foot pedalis actuated.

16 13. An adhesive marker applicator as set forth in claim 12 whereinsaid manual liner guide control comprises an automatic release assemblypivotally mounted to said main chassis, means for manually pivoting saidautomatic liner guide release assembly, and a guide lever pivotallymounted on said main chassis with one end adapted to act upon said linerguide in its other end resiliently connected to said automatic linerguide release assembly so that said liner guide lever will move saidliner guide toward said applicator roller when said automatic linerguide release assembly is manually pivoted.

14. An adhesive marker applicator as set forth in claim 13 wherein aspur gear is mounted to be driven by said measuring roller;

and said automatic release assembly is pivotally mounted on said mainchassis and comprises a trigger slidably and pivotally mounted in saidautomatic release assembly with one end resiliently connected to saidother end of said liner guide lever and spring biased so that its otherend is normally releasably latched in cocked position on said assemblychassis, and a timing segment with a spring return mounted for limitedrotation in said assembly chassis to engage said spur gear when saidautomatic liner guide release is manually pivoted and to be rotated bysaid spur gear into engagement with said trigger to unlatch said triggerto thereby release said liner guide lever.

15. An adhesive marker applier comprised of the combination of anormally vertical main chassis;

an applicator roller housing mounted to project laterally from onevertical surface of a lower rear corner of said main chassis;

a measuring roller housing mounted to project laterally from said onesurface of a lower front corner of said main chassis;

an operator handle by which an operator can guide the travel of saidmarker applier, said handle having a forked lower end, one side of saidforked lower end being pivotally fastened to said applicator rollerhousing and another side of said forked lower end being pivotallyfastened to another vertical surface of said main chassis opposite onevetrical surface of said main chassis;

an applicator roller horizontally rotatably mounted in said applicatorroller housing;

measuring roller horizontally rotatably mounted in said measuring rollerhousing;

means for rotatably mounting a spool of markers on a continuous liner onsaid one side of said main chassis above said applicator roller;

a rewind reel rotatably mounted on said one side of said main chassisabove said measuring roller to receive and rewind said liner after saidliner has been pulled from said spool and said markers have been removedtherefrom;

said applicator roller and said measuring roller being connected torotate together and to drive said rewind reel through a non-positivedrive means;

a stripping shoe having a stripping edge facing said applicator rollerabout which said liner may be threaded for removal of said markers;

a liner guide mounted parallel to said applicator roller forreciprocating movement toward and away from said applicator roller andadapted to receive said liner and marker between it and said applicatorroller;

and a cam means whereby said liner guide is reciprocated at desiredintervals to alternately force said liner into driving engagement withsaid applicator roller and release said liner, said cam means includinga cam driven by said measuring roller and a 17 18 cam follower riding onsaid cam to be displaced by References Cited said cam and operativelyconnected to said liner UNITED STATES PATENTS guide to reciprocate saidliner guide. d t th 1 1,936,357 11/1933 Geczy 156378 lg gg heswe markerpp as S6 f m c m 2,569,140 9/1951 Avery 156 536 said marker applier issupported by and travels upon 5 2765205 10/1956 Capella et 156-584 saidmeasuring roller and said applicator roller; and motive force fordriving said marker applier is DOUGLAS D RUMMOND Prlmary Examinerprovided by said operator pushing on said operator US Cl XR handle. 10156-536, 584

UNITED STATES PATENT OFFICE CERTIFICATE OF CORRECTION Patent No.3,453,660 July 1, 1969 Edward C. Gehweiler et al It is certified thaterror appears in the above identified patent and that said LettersPatent are hereby corrected as shown below:

Column 1 line 63 "guide" should read guided line 71 after "present"insert invention Column 2 line 1 "mehcanically" should read mechanicallyline 1, "adhesives should read adhesive line 51 "applied" should readapplier Column 8 line 53 "as" should read so line 65 "timining" shouldread timing Column 9 line 11 "pedeal" should read pedal line 46"present" should read preset Column 12 line 7 "son" should read soonline 53 "asesmbly" should read assembly line 65 "downwardly" should readdownward Column 13 line 2 "leases" should read lease Column 15 line 4"applies" should read applier Column 16 line 8 "in" should read and line50 before "measuring" insert a Signed and sealed this 24th day of March1970 (SEAL) Attest:

EDWARD M.FLETCHER,JR. WILLIAM E. SCHUYLER, JR. Attesting OfficerCommissioner of Patents

1. AN ADHESIVE MARKER APPLIER COMPRISING THE COMBINATION OF A MAINCHASSIS; A SPOOL MOUNTED ON SAID CHASSIS TO NORMALLY ROTATE ABOUT AHORIZONTAL AXIS, AND HAVING A SLIT LINER WOUND UPON IT AND REMOVABLYSUPPORTING A PLURALITY OF ADHESIVE MARKERS ON A SURFACE OF SAID SLITLINER, SAID LINER BEING MADE UP OF AT LEAST TWO SEPARATE STRIPS; ASTRIPPING SHOE MOUNTED BELOW SAID SPOOL ABOUT WHICH SAID LINER PASSESFROM SAID SPOOL AND AT WHICH SAID MARKERS ARE REMOVED FROM SAID LINER;AN APPLICATOR ROLLER MOUNTED ON SAID CHASSIS BELOW SAID SPOOL AND BEHINDSAID STRIPPING SHOE TO NORMALLY ROTATE ABOUT A HORIZONTAL AXIS AND TOBEAR AGAINST A SURFACE UPON WHICH SAID MARKERS ARE TO BE APPLIED TOPRESS SAID ADHESIVE MARKERS ON SAID SURFACE; A MEASURING ROLLER MOUNTEDON SAID CHASSIS HORIZONTALLY SPACED FROM SAID APPLICATOR ROLLER TONORMALLY ROTATE ABOUT A HORIZONTAL AXIS IN CONTACT WITH SAID SURFACEUPON WHICH SAID MARKERS ARE TO BE APPLIED; A LINER GUIDE ADAPTEDINTERMITTENT RECIPROCATING MOVEMENT TOWARD AND AWAY SAID APPLICATORROLLERR RESPONSIVE IN AT LEAST PART OF ITS MOVEMENT TO ROTATION OF SAIDMEASURING ROLLER AND MOUNTED TO FORCE SAID SLIT LINER AND MARKERS INTODRIVING ENGAGEMENT WITH SAID APPLICATOR ROLLER; AND A LINER REWIND REELROTATABLY MOUNTED ON SAID CHASSIS TO RECEIVE AND REWIND SAID SLIT LINERAFTER SAID ADHESIVE MARKERS HAVE BEEN REMOVED FROM SAID LINER ANDCONNECTED TO BE DRIVEN THROUGH A NONPOSITIVE COUPLING TO MAINTAIN ADESIRED TENSION IN SAID LINER.